Review: Lisa Burstein - Pretty Amy

Lisa Burstein - Pretty Amy

• Pub Date: May 8, 2012
• Publisher: Entangled Publishing
• Format: Paperback 304 pages
• Age Range: Young Adult

Amy is fine living in the shadows of beautiful Lila and uber-cool Cassie, because at least she’s somewhat beautiful and uber-cool by association. But when their dates stand them up for prom, and the girls take matters into their own hands—earning them a night in jail outfitted in satin, stilettos, and Spanx—Amy discovers even a prom spent in handcuffs might be better than the humiliating “rehabilitation techniques” now filling up her summer. Worse, with Lila and Cassie parentally banned, Amy feels like she has nothing—like she is nothing.

Navigating unlikely alliances with her new coworker, two very different boys, and possibly even her parents, Amy struggles to decide if it’s worth being a best friend when it makes you a public enemy. Bringing readers along on an often hilarious and heartwarming journey, Amy finds that maybe getting a life only happens once you think your life is over.

I received this book at RT in a contest. Here's my honest review:

This book needs to sink in a bit more. I have some weird feelings about it, but overall I liked it. Let's see where this review takes me (since I write based on feelings, this could get messy).

So, I guess my major problem with this is that all Amy did was smoke pot. She wasn't some crazed druggie doing meth in the streets or anything. Yes, she did it at school, yes, she smoked quite a bit, and yes, they got caught with a lot of it in the car. But she's down on herself and her life for smoking POT. Her parents are freaked out because of POT. She's seventeen. I've never done it, but don't most people try it in high school? Gah, I don't know.

I do get that she's made poor choices regarding her relationships. She chose the "bad girls" and ditched good people like Joe. Her mom was a little overbearing and a bit psychotic. I might have needed a change too with a mom like her. Anddd this isn't about me. So.. Amy was a teenager in a tough spot, got caught, and had to pay for her indiscretion. You can only hope it teaches her a lesson.

But this isn't just about paying for wrong actions. Amy is forced to learn a lot about herself through some tough love and her outright stubbornness. She finds friends in unexpected places and lessons in stuff she knew from the start. We all have to make our own mistakes to grow, don't we?

Mostly I enjoyed this book. Some parts were predictable, but the way Amy got there wasn't exactly what I thought would happen. She just made me feel sad, though. The whole book is kind of a downer. But like I said, reading this book was easy in the sense that I always wanted to keep going. I was never bored, it wasn't slow or too weird, and I didn't spend too long on this book. Good stuff here. :o)

Bottom line: Definitely check out this unique YA read!

Rating:

4/5 book sharks!